It seems like everywhere I turn there is an article or blog post written for professionals that are struggling in this challenging market. As in every business cycle there is another group of professionals that are consistently “hitting it out of the park” and having a great year. If you find yourself in the latter category, this post is for you. I want to encourage you with these five steps to keep you engaged and continuing on the road to a productive and successful year.

Take time for your personal priorities. When business gets crazy usually the first appointments to be cancelled or forgotten are your personal ones. Make sure you are scheduling time for your workouts, dates with significant other, and reflection time. Review your Life Plan regularly and stay rested. Your mental, physical, and relational health is essential for continued success.

Connect with other successful professionals. The need to connect with others that are experiencing a high level of success has never been more important. Iron sharpens iron and you need to spend time with other successful professionals. This can be done via social networking, attending conferences, or through a regularly schedule face to face meeting. Choose people that have a positive attitude, are hardworking, and willing to give of their time.

Continue to focus on outstanding customer service. Your ability to offer outstanding customer service and differentiate yourself is obviously working. Don’t let up or cut corners on how you provide a great experience for your past, present, and future clients. Look for new and innovative ways to serve and don’t hesitate to ask for repeat or referral business.

Mentor someone. You’ve been blessed in your business so don’t hesitate to pour into someone else that needs encouragement and a helping hand. Mentoring increases your confidence and your standing among peers. It is easy to fall into the trap of thinking that you have to keep your best practices a secret. We all benefit when everyone is a growing and developing professional. You have a great opportunity to be a mentor in this market; take it.

Stay focused and don’t let up. My friend, Daniel Harkavy talks about bi-focal vision where you keep one eye on your vision and one eye focused on the day to day operations of your business. If you lose focus of your vision you will end up somewhere you never intended to be and run the risk of spread yourself and your business too thin. If you focus only on vision, you will lose touch with reality and the ever changing market around you. Don’t let up. I know it is exhausting sometimes but we are in for a long fight and you will need to stay healthy in all areas of your life and business (see step 1 above). There will be a time to rest in the future but right now you need to be firing on all cylinders.

Question: What are you doing this year to stay focused and driven towards success?